A 35-year-old Palatine man was sentenced Tuesday in Cook County Circuit Court to 27 years in prison for sexually assaulting a young girl.
Barnassey Thomas pleaded guilty to one count of predatory criminal sexual assault in a case that Judge Joel Greenblatt described as a “horrific crime.”
Assistant State’s Attorney Shilpa Patel said Thomas began molesting the girl when she was 10. Thomas, who was a friend of the girl’s family, was arrested in 2016 after her mother caught Thomas in the act of molesting the girl, Patel said. The mother called police and Thomas was arrested after fleeing the residence, Patel said. The girl was 12 at the time.
Thomas apologized for his actions, but Greenblatt told him he had abused the girl for more than two years.
“You imposed great harm upon this girl,” Greenblatt said.
Thomas, of the 600 block of Constitution Drive, also will have to register as a sex offender for life.
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George Houde is freelance reporter.